DeKALB – New Huskies quarterback Ross Bowers said he knows what the feeling is like to have a new quarterback come in and threaten the starting spot.

He experienced it at California, where the combined factors of an injury and a new system predicated on a more dual-threat-capable quarterback contributed to his departure from the Golden Bears. And knows he is on the other side of that situation after transferring to Northern Illinois, where he looks to earn the starting job ahead of Marcus Childers, who has had the role the past two years.

“I’ve had competitions in the past where it feels like you’re walking on eggshells around guys because you know you’re not the most comfortable with each other,” Bowers said. “But … [the] best man is going to win the job, and that’s what you want for the team.”

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

The difference with the Huskies for Bowers is that he doesn’t feel on edge around his Huskies teammates.

“I’ve been on the other end of it. I know how it feels, and I know it’s not fun,” Bowers said. “They’ve done a great job of making me feel welcome. And really just made me think I’ve got to step my game up and match their level.”

The Huskies coaching staff has shown no inclination toward rushing to find a QB1.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

“If we felt somebody put themselves in that [QB]1 spot, we’d give them all the reps,” NIU head coach Thomas Hammock said. “We’re still in the evaluation. I’m in no hurry. What’s the hurry? We’re three weeks away. We feel good about where we’re at, where we’re going, and like I’ve said, we’ll make a decision closer to gametime.”

Childers, the starter for the last two years, led a 2018 offense that struggled through the air for much of the season before peaking in the Mid-American Conference Championship game, where Childers was the MVP with a 21-of-33 passing performance for 300 yards and four touchdowns.

The arrival of Bowers for fall practice created an instant quarterback battle, something that the new Huskies staff constantly has highlighted as a perceived positive.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

“I think we both have a different type of skill set,” Childers said. “I think we both throw the ball really well, and I think we have an opportunity to win with both of us.”

During practice, Bowers has showcased a steady pocket presence and a strength of throwing the ball down the field, between the hashes and toward the sidelines.

Offensive coordinator Eric Eidsness said he has liked what he’s seen from Bowers mentally.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

“He’s picked stuff up a lot faster than they have, but he’s still learning every day,” Eidsness said. “You learn in the summer, but when you start facing a real defense, not just 7 on 7, it’s different. You’ve got to handle protection checks, things like that. He’s played a lot of football. He knows how to play the game. It’s just … understanding the same things like we talked about with Marcus. He’s getting us into some good things and some things he misses.”

Childers’ deep route connections with wide receivers have been more consistent in the fall than spring practice.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

“Getting out here with the guys over the summer and in the beginning of that offseason to where we had that connection, we have that feeling with each other like [we] know where he’s going to be and how he’s going to hold his line,” Childers said.

Eidsness said he has seen improvements in Childers’ understanding of how to read coverages and getting the offense to make changes based on how the defense is set up.

“I think a lot of it is he understands the offense now and now as he learns to read defenses and learn defensive weaknesses, he’s better able to get us into better plays and better situations, where he really wasn’t able to do that in the spring,” Eidsness said.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

The one thing that pleases Hammock about the improvement from the spring to the fall with the quarterback position is the types of passes the quarterbacks are completing.

“They’re putting them in spots, and the wide receivers are making plays,” Hammock said. “Like I’ve said from the beginning, it’s all-encompassing. The wide relievers got to run routes at the proper depths and catch the ball and finish plays for the quarterbacks to look good.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

Bowers, Childers and Anthony Thompson all have two years of eligibility left, and Hammock has said it’s a three-way competition for the starting spot between them.

Bowers said the relationship between the trio aided each through the summer.

“Marcus, AT [Thompson] they’re obviously the veterans, and they’ve been great,” Bowers said. “You can tell why they’ve won a championship here. They have championship-level work ethic and attitudes and just approach to the game and approach to the team.”

For wide receivers like DeKalb High School graduate Cole Tucker, the summer work with the three quarterbacks competing for the starting job has led him to feel prepared this fall.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

“You’ve just got to create a relationship with everyone. We don’t know who’s going to be the quarterback Week 1,” Tucker said. “The main focus for the receivers is running the correct route no matter who’s at quarterback, doing what we’re supposed to do. They’ll put the ball on us.”

Childers steadily had found more confidence in the built-in options the new offense has created.

“In some of our concepts, we’ve got one play, and it literally has an answer for every coverage you can possibly think about,” Childers said.

[Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com]

Providing further depth, Thompson has erred away from taking on the easy throws and attacking more down the field in the fall.

“He stands around with a lot more confidence in the huddle and running this system than he did in the spring,” Eidsness said. “In the spring, he would get the ball out to his quick throws and things like that because it was safe and didn’t read as much into coverage stuff, and now he’s starting to read more downfield and understand those things.”